Arsenal 2 Leeds United 0 - Eddie Nketiah back to haunt Whites as first-half display counts for nothing at Emirates - YEP 26/10/21
Leeds United's Carabao Cup run is over for another year after a 2-0 defeat at Arsenal in a real game of two halves at the Emirates.
By Lee Sobot
Leeds impressed in the first half but substitute Calum
Chambers put Arsenal ahead with a header from a corner in the 55th minute,
netting with his first touch of the game and 23 seconds after his introduction
for the injured Ben White.
After a header from captain Liam Cooper to Illan Meslier
fell short, former Whites loanee Eddie Nketiah then doubled Arsenal's lead in
the 69th minute and more or less ended the contest there and then.
Whites head coach Marcelo Bielsa made four changes to his
side but named a strong team that featured England international midfielder
Kalvin Phillips on his return from injury.
England youth international Cody Drameh was also handed his
Whites debut to face a Gunners side that featured two very familiar faces in
former Whites loanees Nketiah and White.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta made nine changes to his side and
the Gunners initially began well, a last-ditch tackle from Diego Llorente
stopping Ainsley Maitland-Niles from bursting into the area, the loose ball
falling to Saed Kolasinac whose shot was deflected wide.
But Leeds threatened for the first time in the 15th minute
when Drameh and Rodrigo combined to tee up Tyler Roberts whose shot was blocked
and sent for a corner.
It was a sign of things to come as a few minutes later,
Llorente's superb raking pass over the top played in James whose poke at goal
was saved by 'keeper Bernd Leno.
United were then denied the opener via a superb save from
Leno in the 27th minute, the 'keeper getting down quickly to save a powerful
half volley from Jack Harrison that was destined for the bottom right corner.
The Whites were now asking all the questions and Leno pulled
off another much easier save to keep out a spinning James shot from the edge of
the box.
Roberts then saw his curler deflected wide and Leno
smothered the ball at the feet of Rodrigo after a Harrison through ball.
But Arsenal created their best opening yet just before the
interval when Emile Smith Rowe sliced a shot over the bar from just inside the
box and the tide was about to turn.
Teams are now allowed to make five substitutions in the
Carabao Cup and Bielsa made his first change during the interval as Mateusz
Klich replaced Forshaw.
The Gunners began the second half on the front foot and
Bielsa then brought on exciting teen forward Joe Gelhardt for Roberts seven
minutes after the restart.
Two minutes later, the Gunners lost White to injury,
Chambers brought on in his place.
Yet it was Chambers who fired Arsenal into the lead as a
corner caused chaos and the centre-back's header trickled over the line and
past Illan Meslier.
Whites club captain Cooper then replaced Llorente but Leeds
struggled to get going and a poor header from Cooper paved the way for Nketiah
to double Arsenal's lead in the 69th minute.
Cooper tried to guide a high ball back to Meslier but failed
to put enough power in his header and Nketiah raced on to the ball and rounded
Meslier before squeezing the ball home.
Young duo Sam Greenwood and Crysencio Summerville had been
waiting to come on as Nketiah scored and the pair finally replaced Rodrigo and
James in the 70th minute.
Leeds looked to respond but the damage was done and Arsenal
went close to adding a third in the 89th minute when Alexandre Lacazette
walloped a fierce shot over the bar.
